Original Research by School Decision on Instructional & Guidance Center
The Instructional & Guidance Center in Roma is a small alternative school serving grades six through twelve within Roma Independent School District. It enrols a tiny cohort, concentrated heavily in the high school grades with only a handful of middle school students. The school sits within a bicultural border community on the Rio Grande, where Roma ISD spans ten campuses across the city and surrounding western Starr County.
This is an alternative setting. Alternative schools typically serve students who have not thrived in a traditional classroom environment, who need a different pace or structure, or who carry other barriers to standard high school progression. The school's grade configuration and enrollment profile suggest it functions as a place for students to continue their education outside the conventional pathway. State assessment data and graduation rates were not available for this school, which is common for alternative programs where students may enter and exit on an individualized timeline rather than a cohort basis, and where the measure of success often looks different than traditional four-year graduation benchmarks.
The student population is entirely Hispanic and faces substantial economic need; nearly all students qualify for free or reduced-price lunch. The school enrolls a handful of sixth and seventh graders, a few more eighth and ninth graders, and then a cluster of tenth, eleventh, and twelfth graders. This distribution suggests the school may draw students across multiple entry points and grade levels rather than serving as a typical progression pipeline.
Within Starr County, Roma ISD is one of three districts. Comparative metrics that would position this school against others in the county—proficiency rates, chronic absenteeism, graduation rates—were not available. A parent or student considering this placement should look directly to Roma ISD and the school itself to understand the specific instructional model, support services available, and what outcomes past students have achieved.
The district as a whole has undertaken substantial investments in facilities and pathways. A school bond passed in 2023 funds long-term improvements including a new multipurpose facility with a Black Box Theater and career-technical-education classrooms. More relevantly for high school students, Roma ISD is part of a Gates Foundation grant, announced in 2025, that expands free dual-credit and early-college options through South Texas College, with the goal of students earning at least fifteen college credits before graduation. The district also received a state grant to establish a licensed practical/vocational nursing pathway. These curricular expansions are durable and broad-reaching, signaling the district's investment in college and career preparation.
For a student in this alternative setting, the proximity to these expanded pathways and the district's focus on dual-credit options could be relevant supports. Roma itself is a small, tight-knit border city where families have deep roots and most residents own their homes. Daily life moves between river-bluff neighborhoods and colonias, with U.S. Highway 83 as the commercial spine. The historic downtown is a National Historic Landmark with binational ties to Ciudad Miguel Aleman just across the Rio Grande.
A parent or student exploring the Instructional & Guidance Center should contact the school directly to understand its curriculum, daily structure, staffing, and what post-secondary outcomes it supports. The lack of published state data reflects the nature of alternative schooling itself rather than a reporting gap, but a parent will want to ask the school how it measures student success and what progression pathways it opens.
See more original research from School Decision →